by Shayne Ford
I doubt my words brought relief to him. All I sense is his tension blasting through his frame.
He checks his phone for a moment as a message flashes on his screen.
“I booked a room for tonight,” he says.
“Where?”
“At the Resort,” he says, lifting a defiant gaze to me.
“Do you think it’s smart? Someone could spot us.”
“Well, let’s hope they won’t,” he mutters, his impatience clearly growing.
He almost leans closer to touch me when we both hear James’ voice.
“Are you coming?” James asks from the doorway.
We both jolt away from each other as if we’re pulled by an invisible hand.
James' eyes brush mine, only for a second before he locks his brother’s gaze.
“Yup,” Tiago mutters as he walks away from me without giving James the slightest explanation.
I bite my lip to stop myself from running my mouth and just watch them leave my office.
Something doesn’t feel right.
I don’t know what it is. All I know is that my stomach is curled up in a ball.
EVE
An hourglass, sleeveless, fitted black dress, with straps and bows on the shoulders and little rhinestones details is my pick for the business dinner.
I didn’t think I needed to go, or let’s just say I hoped I wouldn’t have to, not because I don’t like to socialize, but because being in a setting with friends and guests, and Tiago across from me or next to me, but without the benefit of a normal interaction with him, has become a pain lately.
The charm of secret hookups has lost its luster too.
Perhaps it’s the fact that this is not New York. Getting away with a secret affair in Manhattan was fun, unpredictable, adventurous, and satisfying.
Doing it here, where everybody knows everybody, and people run into each other frequently, especially at work, makes it feel like drudgery.
But attendance isn’t optional. Plus, Rain insisted on having me there.
It’s a large gathering, and I’m hoping that no crazy incident is set to screw this evening, but realistically speaking, anything could happen.
James and Rain pick me up before seven o’clock.
The limo takes us to the majestic resort where rides like ours deposit a lot of guests.
Eight o’clock finds us in a large private room in the biggest restaurant in the resort.
Rain’s eyes sparkle with joy as we get seated at the table.
Unlike me, she wears a colorful chiffon empire dress, reminiscent of the sixties era, her hair, cascading in big waves down her back.
She looks stunning, the flowing dress hiding her belly, her heels setting off her sexy legs.
“Are you still horny?” I ask amused as I tip my gaze down on her outfit.
“Is it that obvious?” she tosses back at me under her breath before she chuckles, entertained.
“Yeah... More than obvious.”
“Well, he knows...” she says, her eyes sliding smoothly to the man she loves.
Standing, James talks to Ed Preston and Lex Harrington.
“What about you? What made you opt for this dress? ” she asks as she swings her eyes back to me.
“I wanted to look professional.”
A naughty grin curves her lips.
“As in call girl professional?”
I crack a smile.
“What is that supposed to mean?”
“You look like you’re about to rip the soul out of a man’s chest.”
“Sorry for the wrong impression. I just wanted to dress differently.”
“You could’ve picked a different shade of blue.”
“Leave me alone, will you?” I throw at her, smiling.
“Oops, someone else got the same memo as you did. What is wrong with you people?”
I follow the direction of her gaze just as Tiago walks in.
My lips part in surprise.
He sports a tailored black suit that falls amazingly well on his frame–– a slight sheen speaking of expensive fabric, and a black shirt, open at the neckline.
His raven hair is brushed back, his green eyes sparkling beneath the canopies of lashes.
My breath hitches twice.
He glances around, hands casually tucked in his pockets.
“He looks as if he’s about to kill someone too...” she mutters, staring at him, mesmerized like me.
We both watch him engage in a conversation with a few guests, men, and women before he finds a seat at the other end of the table.
“Talking about the rebellious brother,” Rain comments, studying her brother-in-law. “He fits in as if he was born in this world.”
“He sort of was,” I murmur, my eyes hovering over his face.
He notices me at last and nods slightly, greeting me.
“Was that for you?” Rain asks, being nosy.
“I don’t know... He kinda looked in this direction. I think it was,” I say, pretending that I have no idea.
“Of course it was, silly. Why would he give me that sultry gaze?”
“It wasn’t sultry.”
“Yes, it was,” she says, picking up a slice of dill pickle from a plate and popping it into her mouth. “I’m hungry,” she says as she slides an appetizer platter closer. “Too bad, you’re not interested in him. He would be a good match for you.”
I chock on water.
She looks at me, chewing on a piece of cheese.
“Are you okay?” she throws at me, her eyebrows going up.
“What makes you say that?”
I lift a cube of gourmet cheese from the platter too.
“Did he say something?” I press further.
“Does he need to? He said he liked you way back when he got into an argument with James because of you.”
“And that’s exactly why he said it. To piss James off.”
“Well, maybe, but look at him now. He’s hot and single.”
“Single? Wasn’t he with that woman back in New York?”
“Do you see her here now?”
“No.”
Her stare doesn’t move away from my face.
“Are you still with Mr. Architect?”
“Um... We’re still conversing on the phone... from time to time,” I mutter, barely putting together a lie.
“Sexting or anything?”
I get a little lost.
“Sexting?”
She quickly dismisses me with a gesture.
“Never mind. Regular talk doesn’t count.”
“Okay, Miss Know-it-All. I don’t think that just because he’s hot and available is enough to start something that lasts longer than a one night stand.”
“Long or short, do you see anyone available around the table? Would you rather see him whisked away by one of the dancers at Red’s.”
Something crumbles inside me.
“Is that a possibility?”
“Anything is a possibility when you look like him. Or you’d rather see him with one of those women,” she says, tipping her chin in the direction of a group of female guests approaching our table. A little older, financially set, looking for a stud?”
“That’s um... a very bad word to describe your brother-in-law.”
“And yet, it’s the truth.”
A couple of the above-mentioned women take seats not far from Tiago. One, in particular, is eyeing him insistently. I start to fidget in my seat, and yet, there’s nothing I can do about it.
I shift my eyes to Rain.
“Well, I’m sure he’ll make his move if he’s really interested in me.”
“Unless she makes a move on him before that.”
She motions in his direction again, and I shift my eyes just on time to catch the brunette leaning closer to him and murmuring something in his ear.
My teeth grind.
“I guess, I need to wait my turn,” I say sourly, watching them like a hawk.
I hav
e no idea what she’s telling him. All I know is that he starts talking to her.
“Or you can do an intervention and stop the woman in her tracks.”
As much as I hate doing this, I find myself encouraged by Rain’s words. And justified, in a way, so here I am, rising to my feet and walking to the other end of the table.
The woman spots me first.
She looks at me smiling, not for long though before I slide my hand onto his shoulder, bend at my waist and murmur in his ear.
“I’d love to dance with you.”
He looks at me, grinning.
“Are you sure?”
“Mmm-hmm.”
The woman bats her lashes, trying to grasp the meaning of our exchange. He excuses himself, takes my hand, and walks me away from the table.
A few minutes later, we dance along with other guests.
“If it takes a brunette hitting on me to have you dance with me, I’ll have one nearby all the time.”
I laugh quietly.
“This is the worst set-up I’ve ever seen.”
“How come you’ve decided to take action?”
I tell him about the little conversation I have had with Rain.
“Really? She said that I’d be good for you.”
“Mmm-hmm.”
“See, I told you. Things are getting exactly where I want them to be.”
We twirl in silence for a few moments.
“And yet, I’m not sure whether we should give them the entire story or not,” I say. “Maybe a shorter version would do it.”
“You mean no escort business and no Christian?”
“Mmm-hmm. Something like that. I think that was the worst part of our story anyway.”
“What about us fucking in Rain’s closet?”
I look at him, angsty.
“You’re not serious, are you?”
“I’m just teasing you.”
“That’s not something I’d want to bring up to her either. No way.”
Another pause ensues.
“So, are you going to talk to James?” I ask.
“Mmm-hmm. And you’ll need to break the news to Rain.”
I stay quiet.
“Have you heard me, baby?”
“Yes. But you first.”
“Okay. Next week, James and I will travel to New York. I’ll talk to him then.”
I read determination in his eyes.
“It will happen,” he says, detecting a sliver of uncertainty in my gaze.
But that’s not everything that torments me.
I’m still very much torn when it comes to spilling out the whole truth about us, and almost tempted to forget about the past and just start dating him as if everything would begin now.
I even suggest that to him, but he seems set on telling the entire story.
“We’d permanently feel like shit, not much different than now. It’s not worth it,” he says.
In a sense, he’s right, so I don’t argue with him.
We go back to the table a few minutes later.
The dark-haired woman set her eyes on someone else while I join Rain, Thea, and Dahlia at my end of the table.
More guests arrive, amongst them Ray and Kyle, David and Ashton. Luckily, my acquaintances from Monaco have female company tonight.
I catch Tiago registering them for a moment, and I feel relieved, the presence of the two women removing the possibility of their men to come to me with another proposal.
The night turns out to be great.
It’s the end of the week. People are relaxed and in a good mood. It’s almost ten o’clock when laughter resonates across the room, and more people start dancing.
At one point, I scoop up a glass of wine from the table and balancing myself atop of my heels, I strut across the room.
It’s moments later when I walk past by a couple that twirls on the dance floor, that someone jerks his elbow and my drink spills on my dress.
Before I know it, Ray shows up with a napkin. Seconds later, Kyle stops next to me as well.
Flanked by them, I’m doing my best to clean my dress, when one of them, I have no idea which, starts helping me, his hand brushing my hip.
I don’t have time to take control over the situation when the man who is so keen to get my dress cleaned, jerks away from me and not through his own volition.
“Take your hands off her, jerk.”
That’s all I hear before the other man gets pushed to the side.
“It was a misunderstanding,” Kyle rushes to clarify, the smile sitting at the corner of his lips, looking like a bad omen to me.
Not the best hour for him–– teasing Tiago Rossi and defying the very odds of his survival.
“She told you she’s not interested in a threesome, fucking idiot,” Tiago thunders, just as a circle forms around us.
Amongst the people witnessing the scuffle, I notice James and Rain, but I don’t have time to dwell over it as Tiago’s fist flies through the air, lands smack on Kyle's face and wipes away his smirk from his lips.
The impact of brute force sends him backward and makes him tumble over a few chairs.
He can’t regain his balance and falls right in the middle of the dinner plates, a noise of broken glass vibrating in my ears.
“Tiago!”
That’s James who tries to grab Tiago’s arm but not before Ray’s head jerks to the side, and the man crashes into a table as well.
That’s when James gets a hold of Tiago and pushes him back.
He growls something between his teeth to his younger brother that escapes me completely before I hear Tiago speaking.
His eyes throw flames, his lips trembling with fury.
“None of this would’ve happened had you not pimped her for a threesome to these fucking dickheads.”
I think I hear a few gasps behind my back, or perhaps it’s my imagination, but I feel as if the blood starts drawing from my body and I’m about to collapse.
“What?”
That’s Rain whose eyes widen in shock and surprise, her gaze swinging from Tiago to me, to James.
Her husband’s face is paler than the table cloth.
“Yes, that’s right,” Tiago says, panting with fury. “You thought that it was cute to ask them if they would want her. She already told them that she wasn’t interested.”
Panic claws at my chest. I wish I could blast my thoughts into Tiago’s head and make him stop talking.
Rain’s eyes are wider than saucers.
James' face says nothing good.
Apparently, no one else wants to talk except for Tiago.
“This is not the first time they come onto her,” he continues. “And she told them more than once that she’s not interested. She told them months ago in Monaco too.”
Oh, no... He didn’t just say that.
“Eve?”
Rain’s voice is filled with questions.
She looks at me, her eyes flickering with disbelief.
“What is this?” she mutters.
James doesn’t say a word, only slides his hands into his pockets.
Waiters rush to the scene to clean the mess, and in that chaos, Tiago finally shuts his mouth, spins around and storms out.
James starts talking to the two bruised men while Rain turns to me.
“Do you have something to tell me?” she asks in a quiet voice. “What was that, Eve?”
I swallow hard, my lips dry as paper.
“Can we go somewhere else?” I murmur, livid.
15
EVE
“Christian?”
She looks at me, her eyes popping, her mouth open.
“Are you telling me that Tiago was Christian?”
I nod.
“Mmm-hmm.”
She lets out a bitter chuckle.
“Are you fucking kidding me? And you couldn’t tell me all this time?”
A lump forms in my throat and tears wash my eyes as I sense the pain growing inside her.
&nbs
p; “But why? I don’t understand.”
I lean back in my chair, looking at her. She sits across from me, unable to take her eyes away from me.
We’re in a small lounge not far from the restaurant.
We’re the only people in the room.
“Shame...?” I try.
She shakes her head in disbelief.
“Shame? What are you talking about?”
That bitter smile tugs at her lips again.
I feel like dying, but somehow I muster enough courage to continue.
“When I met Christian, it struck me how much he resembled James, but there was no way I could make a connection between the two of them. I had no idea that James had a brother. You didn’t tell me,” I say, reproachful.
It registers with me that she doesn’t like to be reminded that she had her own secrets that she shielded from me, but it’s the truth. Things would’ve been different, perhaps, had she told me.
“It can’t be only that,” she retorts. Why would you feel ashamed? I don’t understand. We’ve both planned your escort adventure.”
“It wasn’t easy for me to tell you that I was attracted to a man who looked exactly like James.”
Her eyes widen in surprise.
Suspicion reads in her eyes as well.
“Is that it?”
“Yes. That’s what made me keep it a secret... At least, in the beginning. Plus, I never thought it would be more than some short-lived experience.”
“Were you afraid that I might get the wrong impression?”
“Yes. I didn’t want you to think that I was secretly infatuated with James.”
“Were you?”
“No, no.”
“Then, why?”
I look down.
“I can’t explain it. It was probably something I might’ve thought of if I were in your shoes, and it happened to me.”
Shock dances on her face.
“But all those lies, Eve. Didn’t you have a problem with that?”
“It wasn’t easy. In the beginning, I thought it was a white lie, and it wouldn’t hurt anyone. And then, I discovered who he was, and wanted to punish him because he pulled away from me without the slightest explanation. And when we finally got back together, I wanted to be able to live that story with him and see what our odds were to make it real, and in the end, there was another factor that played a big role in my decision to keep everything a secret. I knew how important Tiago’s relationship with James was, and revealing the truth at that particular moment, would’ve put everything at risk.”
